Do you still read books?

I think this issue is very important for future educators (and society as a whole). I think it's a real shame people are not reading books as much as they used to. A lot of the kids I've worked with say they don't read for pleasure. They would rather watch a video or play on their D.S. People don't seem to have the patience for reading novels anymore. I've posted a link about this issue, and one of the men interviewed says books are inconvenient. Why read to learn about something when you can just Google it? I think society has lost touch with the idea of the process of learning being more important than simply just knowing the answer to a question.

I personally love books. I love the feel of the paper, the smell, the physical movement of flipping the pages. I know a lot of people are moving away from actual books to downloading the stories on their iPads. I cannot imagine reading a novel on a screen. It would hurt my eyes and I would lose the connection I feel from actually holding a book. I don't mind reading short articles on the computer, but an entire novel? Reading is my downtime; I use it as an escape. I already spend way too much time staring at screens. I really think as educators we need to encourage children at a young age to pick up books. We should always have books available in the classroom, even if the day comes when every child has an iPad and can download any book they want. I think if we have books available to children, they have a better chance at becoming interested in reading.